Improvement in hoop-skirts



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.'

LEOPOLD SANDERS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOB TO THOMAS B. DE

FOREST, OF BIRMINGHAM, CONNECTICUT.

IMPROVEMENT IN HOOP-SKIPLTS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 42,736, dated May 10, 1864.

To all whom Iit may concern:

Beit known that I, LEOPOLD SANDERS, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Hoop-Skirts; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and eXact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification.

My invention relates to that kind of hoopskirts which are constructed with a capacity of distention and contraction, whereby the circumference of the skirt may be increased or diminished, by an adjustment of the hoops effected either at the pleasure of the wearer or by being acted upon by pressure of persons against the wearer.

Previous to my invention this kind of skirts has been made with the overlapping ends of the hoops retained in metallic clasps, called extension-clasps, in such manner as to admit of the adjustment necessary to increase or diminish the circumference of the hoops, and thus vary the size of the skirt, to suit the will ofthe wearer, and so as (as was presumed) to admit of a contraction and distention of the skirt being eifected, respectively, by pressure against the wearer, in a confined or crowded situation, and the natural tendency of the springs or hoops to assume the largest circle. Some of the great practical defects in this method of constructing hoop-skirts are, the liability of the hoops ends to become disengaged from their confining metallic clasps, and stick out in the way of the wearer and render the skirt inconvenient and even dangerous to the wearer; also, the great difculty and practically, the impossibility of making this description of skirt strong enough and at the same time so that its hoops will slide freely in the extension-clasps.

It has also been customary, previous to my invention, to make this class of skirts with the ends of its hoops or springs overlapped and attached to two vertical tapes, one of which was arranged or located outside of all the hoops and the other inside of all the hoops, the outside tape being retained near to the hoops (against the natural tendency of the springs to throw it away from them) by means of metallic catches or clamping devices so constructed and arranged as that by adjusting the said clam ping or retaining devices on the hoops thelatter would be contracted or distended, as desired-as, for an instance, in the description of skirt shown and described in the patent granted to Mann and McDonald. The objections to this method of construction are its complication and liability to derangement and its ina-bility toautomatic adjustment.

My invention has forits object a new method of forming this kind of skirt, in which the size of the skirt may be increased or diminished, which shall not involve any of the ob jections found to exist in the construction of skirts of this class previously known, and to produce a hoop-skirt in which, though the ends of the hoops or springs overlap each other in the front of the skirt, that portion of the skirt where the hoops do overlap is strong and not liable to derangement, While at the same time the circumference of the skirtmay be varied readily; and to these ends my invention consists in attaching or securing the overlapped ends of the continuous hoops to two vertical vtapes or their equivalents, which are so formed and arranged with said hoops as to slide freely around them, as will be hereinafter more fully explained.

To enable those skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the construction and operation of one of my improved hoop-skirts, referring by letters to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure lis an elevation of one of lmy improved eXtension-skirts. Fig. 2 is a detail view (increased scale)showing inner side of one ofthe vert-ical tapes, to which hoops7 ends are secured, and two ends of hoops. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view (increased scale) showing one hoop end and part one tape.

In the several figures the same part will be found denoted by the same letter of reference.

A and A are the vertical tapes; B, the hoops or springs, and C, the waistband of the skirt. The tapes A are made with loops or pockets D, through which the hoops B are passed, and withinwhich they are retained by metallic clasps, or in any other manner well known to the trade or manufacturer. The tapes A and A are similarly made with pockets D; but the arrangement of the hoops in the pockets of these two tapes is as follows, viz one end of each hoop B is passed through the pocket of tape A,in which it is left free toA slide, and then into the pocket of tape r where it is secured by a metallie clasp, G, (see Figs. 2 and 3,) and the opposite end of each.

hoop B is passed through the pocket of tape A, in whit-h it is left free to slide, and thence into pocket of tape A', where it is secured by a clasp, G, or in any other manner. By thus arranging the overlapped ends of the hoops B in the tapes A and A, as clearly shown, it will be seen that theadjustment ofthe skirt may be readily effected, for by pulling the tapes A and A farther apart. or from each other the ends ot' the hoops B will be overlapped -to a greater extent, as shown by red lines at Fig. 2, and consequently the circumference ofthe skirt will be diminished. While, on the contrary, it' the hoops B be taken hold ot between tape A and A and between tape A and A and their ends pulled apart, then the tapes A and A will be brought closer together, the ends of the hoops B overlapped less, and consequently the circumference of the skirt increased.

It will be understood that by the method of construction shown and described I prod uee a skirt which is readily adjustable, and which will also adjust itself to some extent when the wearer is crowded intoasmall space.

It will be understood that I do not propose to limit myself to the detail ot' construction shown,for thepeculiarmannershown of fastening the ends of the hoops to the tapes A and A, and also the particular manner of arranging the tapes A and A to slide on the hoops, may be varied without departing from my invention. rlhe hoops B, in lieu of passing through pockets D in tapes A and A, may be passed through and left free to slide in eyes or holes ma'de in the tapes A A, or may be arranged in other Ways so as to slide through said tapes, and some other device or means than that shown for securing the ends ot the hoops B may be employed Without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having explained my invention so that one skilled in the art could make and use it, and neither laying any claim to overlapping the ends of thehoops, nor desiring to limit myself to the precise mode shown of carrying out my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A hoop-shirt in which the overlapped ends of the hoops are secured to the tapes A and A, or their equivalent, which slide freely around said hoops, substantially in the Inanner and for the purpose set forth.

L. SANDERS.

XVitnesses:

D. ROBERTSON, Guo. W. REED. 

